Gun Shark Posted September 5, 2017 Share Posted September 5, 2017 (edited) Because I just had a massive power surge that fucked up both my AC3100s and an ATT power box. I just got dual RT-AC88U's with one configured as an access point. I use two of these routers because one is not enough to fill the whole house or reach the backyard, and I have multiple NAS drives for backups. What router do you use, and why? ETA: I returned said routers and got a Ubiquiti Unifi enterprise set up and love it. Edited June 30, 2018 by Gun Shark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njl Posted September 8, 2017 Share Posted September 8, 2017 https://www.asus.com/us/Networking/RTAC66U/ It's been a couple years now I think, so it's probably no longer top of the line...but it was by far, the best bang for the buck in a Tomato-compatible router. I run Tomato Shibby on it. It's our router, AP, media server (couple TB disk USB attached to it). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mog Posted September 8, 2017 Share Posted September 8, 2017 This is my current router not a bad little guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanwall Posted September 8, 2017 Share Posted September 8, 2017 Link Sys AC1900ACS prior to that a WD N900 (not that great) I'm surprised the AC1900 is working right now. I must have had a close lightning strike when I was away about a month ago. When I came home I found the following issues: Two ethernet wired pc's had on board NIC's not working 1 switch was dead 1 ethernet wired WD Player was dead Two Squeeze box units ac/power adaptors were dead. One of the two Squeeze boxes was dead. The two units were wifi not ethernet The WD900 was dead . This was setup just as an access point/shared drive. The drive may be good I have not checked it yet The reason I'm surprised is that the AC1900 survived and is working OK. The PC's and router were on UPS's I installed NIC cards in the PC's and they are working with no issues. I had always heard that lightning can do strange things, well now I know. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pipedreams Posted September 8, 2017 Share Posted September 8, 2017 I'll second the ASUS routers, I have the older RT-N66U it still works great. I use various wireless devices 50 feet from the router with no problem. You can buy these certified refurbished with DD-WRT many places online very reasonable. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyGunFreak Posted September 8, 2017 Share Posted September 8, 2017 Just now, pipedreams said: I'll second the ASUS routers, I have the older RT-N66U it still works great. I use various wireless devices 50 feet from the router with no problem. You can buy these certified refurbished with DD-WRT many places online very reasonable. Same here. I didn't ever really try the stock firmware on my RT-N66U, but on the RT-N16U, it left a lot to be desired. I tried dd-wrt on the N16, and did not like the interface.. otherwise it worked just fine. I had Advanced Tomato on my N16 for several years until that router died with very few problems. When I got the RT-N66U, I had liked Advanced Tomato so much I pretty much booted it up and tested the router, and began the process of flashing it with Tomato. As I was searching out the Tomato firmware to use, I kept reading about the Merlin Firmware on threads, etc.. which apparently is Tomato, designed specifically for ASUS... so I gave it a try. Been using it a little over a year and like it a lot (actually just upgraded the firmware to the newest version yesterday) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itisbruno Posted September 8, 2017 Share Posted September 8, 2017 I'm running an old Belkin F7D3301 (sub $25) with DDWRT on it. Works great. Router on main floor, and I stream fox news in the upstairs bedroom with no issues. Find yourself the least expensive N router you can fond and flash it with DDWRT and you will have a solid setup. Remember 802.11N does not work on TKIP encryption, use WEP for full speed. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgiaGlocker Posted September 11, 2017 Share Posted September 11, 2017 My first one was a Linksys. It lasted almost 5 years and then just quit one day. I had no problems with it during that time. I now have a Netgear that I have had for a couple of years and I have had no problems with it so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KBKEITH Posted September 11, 2017 Share Posted September 11, 2017 (edited) TP-Link Archer C8. Got it from Costco. It has been trouble free for about a year now. Edited September 11, 2017 by KBKEITH 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dudel Posted September 12, 2017 Share Posted September 12, 2017 Started with Linksys, and had no problems. Then they got acquired by Cisco, and they had some problems (hopefully cleared up by now) Moved over to NetGear and it's been working find. I also use some TP-Link gear for IP over powerlines. It's been good as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldengineer Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 I use and love my Netgear R6700V2. It's only AC1750 but that's more than adequate for us to run 2 HD Netflix streams and handle our normal internet traffic. It has a simple UI that makes it easy to do things like port forwarding, static IP assigns, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duc748s Posted July 1, 2018 Share Posted July 1, 2018 (edited) Currently using a Netgear R-8000 on the main network for streaming games,TV and movies (from DVR box and NAS). Use a RT-AC68U in the bedroom for the TV and gaming set-up that's been DDRT'd. Works well for me, currently looking out for the new routers that are AX and seeing where this spec goes, thinking of jumping into it but I think I'll let it mature a bit first Edited July 1, 2018 by Duc748s Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wolfpacker Posted July 1, 2018 Share Posted July 1, 2018 TP-Link Archer C-5400 v2.0. This is my 3rd warranty replacement. Be sure to read their forums at TP-Link, a lot of people have had issues with this model. Mainly the 2Ghz radio dies. Very good performance, but I'll go back to Netgear or ASUS for my next one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minderasr Posted July 1, 2018 Share Posted July 1, 2018 Running a Linksys WRT 1900AC here. No issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mlk18 Posted July 1, 2018 Share Posted July 1, 2018 TP-Link AC1750 Archer C7. Had it over a year with no issues whatsoever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GPM Posted July 1, 2018 Share Posted July 1, 2018 ASUS RT-AC86U running Merlin firmware. More expensive than most but one of the only ones with enough power to run a VPN at reasonable speeds (>60 Mbps). 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger1079 Posted July 2, 2018 Share Posted July 2, 2018 (edited) I know this is far from the norm but a Cisco ASA 5506-X with an Apple Time Capsule for WiFi. I originally bought the ASA while studying for my Cisco exams and thought it would be cool to have the actual hardware to practice on and have kept it because it has been rock solid for a few years now. Edited July 2, 2018 by Roger1079 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gun Shark Posted July 2, 2018 Author Share Posted July 2, 2018 2 hours ago, Roger1079 said: I know this is far from the norm but a Cisco ASA 5506-X with an Apple Time Capsule for WiFi. I originally bought the ASA while studying for my Cisco exams and thought it would be cool to have the actual hardware to practice on and have kept it because it has been rock solid for a few years now. I’m guessing that’s going to be me next year with whatever the latest is then. I’m currently studying for my A+, then it’s on to the MCSE, then the CCNA/E. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger1079 Posted July 2, 2018 Share Posted July 2, 2018 Before the ASA I had to learn using the CLI on a PIX 525. The ASDM makes some things easier but also at the same time is nowhere near as intuitive as Cisco advertises it to be. I had a 5505 before the 5506 and found the base license was nowhere near sufficient for even home use and spent nearly $1000 on the Security Plus license just to get the features I needed out of it. With the 5506 Cosico has fixed that and the base model is now sufficient for all my needs with the least of licensing. Well worth every dollar I spent on it and has been an invaluable tool for learning both the CLI and ASDM configuration commands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger1079 Posted July 2, 2018 Share Posted July 2, 2018 2 hours ago, Gun Shark said: I’m guessing that’s going to be me next year with whatever the latest is then. I’m currently studying for my A+, then it’s on to the MCSE, then the CCNA/E. If you know the basics of PC's and troubleshooting hardware and software, both parts of the A+ should be a breeze without much study if any at all. The Microsoft exams are all a bitch, and the Cisco exams are a bit easier so long as you know the core material. Let me know if I can help in any way with getting you ready for the exams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gun Shark Posted July 2, 2018 Author Share Posted July 2, 2018 17 minutes ago, Roger1079 said: Before the ASA I had to learn using the CLI on a PIX 525. The ASDM makes some things easier but also at the same time is nowhere near as intuitive as Cisco advertises it to be. I had a 5505 before the 5506 and found the base license was nowhere near sufficient for even home use and spent nearly $1000 on the Security Plus license just to get the features I needed out of it. With the 5506 Cosico has fixed that and the base model is now sufficient for all my needs with the least of licensing. Well worth every dollar I spent on it and has been an invaluable tool for learning both the CLI and ASDM configuration commands. 14 minutes ago, Roger1079 said: If you know the basics of PC's and troubleshooting hardware and software, both parts of the A+ should be a breeze without much study if any at all. The Microsoft exams are all a bitch, and the Cisco exams are a bit easier so long as you know the core material. Let me know if I can help in any way with getting you ready for the exams. I have found that about the A+ as well, I just got a book from Amazon since the couple of free practice tests online, that I took cold with no studying at all I got a 65. It was mostly some of the nuances with the different utilities and bioses. I found that I knew the terms and what they were talking about, just not the answer to the question. Thank you very much for your offer to help. I will definitely reach out to you when the time is right. What do you think would be a better license to go for first after the A+; MCSE or Cisco? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pipedreams Posted July 9, 2018 Share Posted July 9, 2018 (edited) On 7/1/2018 at 12:18 PM, GPM said: ASUS RT-AC86U running Merlin firmware. More expensive than most but one of the only ones with enough power to run a VPN at reasonable speeds (>60 Mbps). Maybe I'm using the wrong VPN service but where do you get VPN at 60Mbps, or maybe I should ask what it costs for that speed. Edited July 9, 2018 by pipedreams Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger1079 Posted July 9, 2018 Share Posted July 9, 2018 On 7/2/2018 at 12:08 PM, Gun Shark said: I have found that about the A+ as well, I just got a book from Amazon since the couple of free practice tests online, that I took cold with no studying at all I got a 65. It was mostly some of the nuances with the different utilities and bioses. I found that I knew the terms and what they were talking about, just not the answer to the question. Thank you very much for your offer to help. I will definitely reach out to you when the time is right. What do you think would be a better license to go for first after the A+; MCSE or Cisco? The A+ will give you a solid foundation for basic hardware and OS troubleshooting. That would be the place to start. I would recommend the N+ to gain the fundamental knowledge of network design and troubleshooting. The CCNA is not a difficult exam, however the first chapter can be very overwhelming as it is a huge amount of information about the OSI model which breaks down each of the 7 layers of network communication and explains it in detail. Once you understand and get past that, the rest becomes much easier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glocks4Freedom Posted July 9, 2018 Share Posted July 9, 2018 Netgear R-7000 running Asuswrt-Merlin. Not a bad router, but fixing to pfSense up soon. Supermicro E100-9AP is on my radar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GPM Posted July 9, 2018 Share Posted July 9, 2018 5 hours ago, pipedreams said: Maybe I'm using the wrong VPN service but where do you get VPN at 60Mbps, or maybe I should ask what it costs for that speed. The VPN speed is related to your ISP's speed. I have a 100Mbps service and get over 90Mbps through the VPN. I use iVPN but most will get you speeds close to your ISP speed depending on how far you are from the VPN server. From what I understand most routers do not have the power to reach higher speeds. Of course if you use the VPN's app on your computer you will get better performance as any computer has much more power than a consumer router. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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